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Camryn Carlo holds a volleyball during Cornell's media day at Newman Arena at Bartels Hall on Saturday, Aug. 23, 2023 in Ithaca, N.Y.
John Lukach/Cornell Athletics

Volleyball Gearing Up to Host Cornell Invitational This Weekend

9/12/2023 1:00:00 PM

ITHACA, N.Y. – After hitting the road for three matches at the Ellis Rowland Memorial Tournament, the Cornell volleyball team returns to Newman Arena this weekend to host Morgan State and Iowa in its Cornell Invitational.

Cornell vs. Morgan State
SITE: Newman Arena at Bartels Hall – Ithaca, N.Y.
DATE AND TIME: Friday, Sept. 15 at 7:00 p.m.
RECORDS: Cornell (1-5, 0-0 Ivy League), Morgan State (2-5, 0-0 MEAC)
SERIES RECORD: Cornell leads 1-0
BROADCAST: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: CornellBigRed.com

Cornell vs. Iowa
SITE: Newman Arena at Bartels Hall – Ithaca, N.Y.
DATE AND TIME: Saturday, Sept. 16 at 2:00 p.m.
RECORDS: Cornell (1-5, 0-0 Ivy League), Iowa (6-4, 0-0 Big 10)
SERIES RECORD: First matchup
BROADCAST: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: CornellBigRed.com

Battled Hard in Ellis Rowland Memorial
The Big Red was on the road this past weekend at the Ellis Rowland Memorial Tournament in Hamilton, N.Y., losing all three matches. The Big Red fell to West Virginia on Friday, 3-1, in the first-ever matchup between the two programs before falling in both contests on Saturday to UAlbany (3-1) and host Colgate (3-1).

Junior Camryn Carlo had a solid weekend for the Big Red, being named to the all-tournament team after netting 27 kills and 15 total blocks alongside a team-high .545 hitting percentage over the three matches. The Tampa, Fla. native also hit a career milestone, recording her 200th career kill in the third set of Cornell's matchup against the Mountaineers on Friday. 

Freshman Jaida Sione also showed out for Cornell, recording 30 kills, including a career-high 14 in the loss to UAlbany on Saturday. Sophomore Eliza Konvicka also led the team with 36 kills and six service aces, while senior Sydney Moore had a team-high 20 blocks in the tournament for the Big Red.

Sophomore Doga Ozalp continued to be the main setting option for the red and white, dishing out 108 assists over the three matches, and freshman Sarita Pomar stood tall as the Big Red's libero, registering 46 digs and handing out 15 assists for the Big Red.

A Marathon Third Set vs. Colgate
Cornell's 33-31 win in the third set of its match against Colgate on Saturday night was one for the record books, as it was the first time the Big Red and an opponent both went over 30 points since Sept. 7, 2018. On that day, Cornell and the Houston Cougars faced off in the Flo Hyman Collegiate Cup in Texas. Cornell won the set 35-33, but lost the match 3-1.

A Look Inside the Opponents

Cornell vs. Morgan State

  • Friday's match between the Big Red and the Bears will be the second all-time meeting.
  • Both teams last squared off in Ithaca on Sept. 13, 1996, with Cornell taking the match 3-1.
  • The Bears went 3-26 overall and 2-12 in MEAC play last season.
  • Morgan State comes into Friday's match 3-8 overall after snapping a four-match losing streak with a sweep of Manhattan on Sept. 9. 
  • Senior OH Makila Billingsley has led the offensive attack for the Bears with 86 kills and 2.46 kills/set in 35 sets played so far in 2023. Junior OH/RS Ainara Fernandes is second on the team with 71 kills and is third in the MEAC with 0.41 service aces per set.
  • The Bears have three players with over 90 assists on the season in senior Erin Carpenter (98), junior Trinity Carruthers (91), and freshman Mya Karrick (91). 
  • Senior MB Justyus Jackson leads Morgan State with a .273 hitting percentage and is second on the team in blocks (28). 
  • The Bears have been a blocking machine this season, leading the MEAC with 85.5 overall and 2.19/set. 
     

Cornell vs. Iowa

  • Saturday's match between the Big Red and Hawkeyes will be the first-ever meeting.
  • Iowa went 10-21 overall and 4-16 in Big 10 play in 2022.
  • The Hawkeyes come into Saturday's match 6-4 overall after going 2-1 in its Hawkeye Invitational this past weekend. Iowa defeated Central Michigan on Friday (3-1) before splitting two matches on Saturday against Missouri State (3-1) and Grand Canyon University (0-3).
  • Fifth year OH Caitlan Buettner leads Iowa with 140 kills and 4.16 points/set this season, which both rank in the top 10 in the Big 10. She is also sixth in the NCAA with 425 total attacks coming into the weekend.
  • Sophomore OH Nataly Moravec has also impressed since transferring from BYU, with 104 kills in 38 sets played for the Hawkeyes. 
  • The Hawkeyes also have two players with 100 plus digs in sophomore libero Sydney Dennis (159) and Buettner (102). Dennis' 4.18 digs/set are ranked fourth in the Big 10. 
  • Iowa is one of the best teams in the country regarding digs, as they are tied for eighth in Division I competition with 606. 
  • Iowa currently ranks second and third in the Big 10 with 15.54 digs/set and 12.03 assists/set.
     

Up Next
After this weekend's matches, Cornell will hit the road to open Ivy League play against Columbia on Saturday, Sept. 23 at 5:00 p.m. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
 

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